relationships

I have a question about accommodations. I have a 10 year old student with severe anxiety and perfectionism. She is unable to understand that she needs to practice songs even if she doesn’t like them. She is working on this skill, among others, with a…

• Last updated 11 months ago
• accommodations, adapting, adapting the curriculum, adapting to student's needs, ADHD, anxiety, anxious, anxious student, bullying, changing teaching order, dislikes Reading Rhythm, emotion, emotional, emotional limitations, emotional student, emotional students, emotions, encouraging practice, feeling rhythm, helping students feel rhythm, improving rhythm skills, lack of practice, managing emotion, masters of the rhythm, mental health, MORs, moving slowly, neurodivergence, neurodivergent, neurological issues, neurology, not practicing, not wanting to learn song, not wanting to learn songs, omitting pieces from the program, parents of special needs, patience with slow learners, perfection, perfectionism, poor practice, processing rhythm, processing rhythms, reading rhythm, relationship, relationships, rhythm difficulty, rhythmically challenged, RR, slow learner, slow pace, slow progress, special needs, student anxiety, student dislikes songs, teaching rhythm, teaching special needs, therapist, therapy, validate, validating, validation

Any great ice-breaker ideas for piano lessons?!?!? I’ve been recommitting to group lessons this year and so I have several returning students who are coming together in new groups. While they all know me, they’ll be new to each other and I’d love to find…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• adding students to a group, benefits of group lessons, benefits of shared lessons, break the ice, breaking down barriers, comfort in teaching groups, communicate, communication, forming groups, friends, group, group dynamics, group lesson, group lessons, group lessons scheduling, group obstacles, groups, ice-breaker, icebreaker, leading groups, managing groups, managing shared lessons, relationship, relationships, scheduling groups, scheduling shared lessons, setting up groups, shared, shared lesson, shared lesson ideas, shared lesson management, shared lessons, shared lessons management, starting groups, teaching friends, teaching groups, value of groups

You know how you have a little small talk before the class begins…finding out how they are and how piano was that week? Well, this week I tried a little different angle. I asked “Did you make any musical discoveries this week”. The answers surprised…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• checking in, communicate, communicating where you are at, communication, conversations, discovery, question, relationship, relationships, small talk, talking about SM

I have found quite a few of my students are very emotional at lessons. When that happens, lessons are a bit of stressful for me sometimes. Do you have similar experience? My own children (now grown) never exhibited this sort of behaviors when they were…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• behavior, behavior in class, behavior issues, challenge, challenges, challenging behavior, challenging student, communicate, communicating where you are at, communication, cry, crying, disappointment, emotion, emotional, emotional limitations, emotional student, emotional students, emotions, expectations for behavior, expression, feelings, frustrated, frustrated student, frustration, managing emotion, misbehavior, mistakes, negative behavior, playing through mistakes, relationship, relationship with coach, relationships, self expression, stress, student behavior, student makes me feel uncomfortable, upset

I’m sensing my own impatience lately with some of my adult students! I also feel like I’ve been getting lots of “I’m nervous” and “it was perfect at home” from them. Maybe it’s just me… I’m not quite sure what’s going on. I’m just feeling…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• adult students, at home practice, enhancing practice, file folder analogy, frustrated, frustrated student, frustration, group lesson, group lessons, how to practice, impatience, Laurie Richards, Long Term Relationship, long term relationships, long-term relationship with teaching, LTR, managing practice, mistakes, nerves, nervous, nervousness, perfection, piano teacher effect, pract, practice, practice guidelines, practice habits, practice ideas, practice location, practicing, practicing guidelines, relationship, relationships, Robin Keehn, teacher effect

Has anyone heard of school teachers saying children should use their own ‘internal motivation’ rather than pushing them to do something? We were discussing reward for completing tasks. Poor Mum is confused, I am telling her she needs to guide her children, manage their activities and…

• Last updated 4 years ago
• claiming territory, coach, coach responsibility, commitment, commitment to lessons, discipline, encouragement, encouraging parents, encouraging practice, encouraging students, enjoying the process, external rewards, extrinsic rewards, holding coaches accountable, holding students accountable, intrinsic rewards, Long Term Relationship, long term relationships, long-term relationship conversation, LTR, managing practice, motivation, parent support, parental responsibility, practice, practice habits, practicing, practicing guidelines, quitting, relationship, relationship conversation, relationship with coach, relationships, requirement, requirements, responsibility, rewards, student interests, student rewards, unmotivated, unmotivated students, unsupportive parent, want to quit

Looking for ideas re: if and how you acknowledge students’ birthdays. Card, small gift, nothing? I do a white board each month with the names of students’ birthdays that month, and then once a month we celebrate with cake or treats that I provide –…

• Last updated 6 years ago
• birthdays, celebrating birthdays, relationships, student birthdays

In this webinar Neil talks about the design of upset, what that means specifically and how to manage, and more importantly, prevent upset from occurring. This includes developing an understanding of some underlying dynamics in your relationships with students and coaches with regard to expectations.…

• Last updated 6 years ago
• communication, difficult conversations, expectation, intention, Laurie Richards, Long Term Relationship, LTR, managing coaches, managing students, Neil Moore, relationships, request, requirement

In this webinar we discuss the importance of a strong ‘3-legged-stool’ – an alignment among the teacher, student, and coach. Neil shares an analogy, The Five S’s, to help you visualize this concept and discover your influence as a teacher. Topics include: Introduction & Context…

• Last updated 6 years ago
• 3 legged stool, 5 S's, alignment, alliance, claiming territory, coaches, communication, managing coaches, relationships, team, try it out

One of my students (11 years old) has been in a valley and I recognized at least one area where the mom could be more supportive. So I called the mother about the relationship conversation. After a fruitful 10-15 minute phone conversation, the mother told…

• Last updated 7 years ago
• coaching parents, communication, Long Term Relationship, relationships, valleys